Jarome Luai has revealed his aim to bring an NRL premiership ring home for his partner after their new baby's birth was induced to avoid a grand final clash.
Jarome Luai has vowed to bring a premiership ring home for his partner after she was induced into labour to avoid a possible NRL grand final dilemma.
The Penrith five-eighth became a father for the third time on Monday, starting grand final week beside partner Bailey Paris Toleafoa for the birth of baby Halo.
He returned for the club's fan and media day on Tuesday, before rushing to the hospital to help take Halo home for the first time.
With their baby initially due on Tuesday, the couple had long planned to accelerate the process if needed to ensure there was no clash with Sunday's decider against Parramatta.
In doing so, they avoided the situation that Luai's opponent Mitch Moses was presented with last week, when he missed attending the birth of his first child to play in Parramatta's preliminary final win in Townsville.
Now, the pair will mark up against each other in the title decider at Accor Stadium after rollercoaster weeks.
"We planned it previously that if we were to make the grand final that Bailey would get induced on Monday," Luai told AAP.
"She was due today. It just feels like the stars have aligned for us.
"They're special moments that I'll never forget and cherish until I die.
"Just grateful and blessed that baby's healthy and my partner's healthy and now I can focus on the job at hand."
Luai said the healthy arrival of Halo meant he was still able to go ahead with his World Cup plans, named in Samoa's 24-man squad on Tuesday.
Now with three children aged under four, he was also adamant sleep will not be an issue this week.
He jokingly claimed he considered checking himself into a hotel room to ensure he was well rested to play a crucial role in Penrith's shot at back-to-back titles.
"I'm sweet. I'll get my sleep and my missus will make sure I'm getting sleep anyway," Luai said.
"She's that type of person. Very selfless. She knows how much this means to me and the boys.
"She's going to play her part, I'm sure. And I'm going to do my best to bring a ring home for her."
Luai's baby was not the only good news for Penrith to start the week.
While Taylan May's chances of overcoming a hamstring injury are officially over, Spencer Leniu is well on track to overcome a head knock and play after being hit high by Souths' Taane Milne.
The front-rower trained with Penrith players on Tuesday in front of around 4000 fans, after getting clearance from an independent specialist to play.
"My head is feeling good. At the time it was a bit sore," the 22-year-old said.
"But after the game and the next morning I was sweet. It was just the impact he got me with and my neck was a bit stiff.
"The specialist was happy I haven't had a concussion in my career so far. I think that was the biggest reason why he cleared me."
